A Light in the Dark
by TheFantasyTrain
Summary: Naminé attempts to escape Castle Oblivion, unhappy with the manipulations of the organization. She runs into a strange boy, who she has never before seen in the castle. Set during Chain of Memories.


**Disclaimer:** I do not own anything at all to do with Kingdom Hearts.

* * *

Naminé was quiet as a mouse as she sat up in her cot. Peering across the room at the older girl, a Nobody named Larxene, who was curled up completely under the covers in her own bed. Slowly, Naminé climbed out of bed, slipping into her white slippers and grabbing her notebook from the nightstand. Her heart pounded inside her chest as she tiptoed over to the older girls closet. She opened it only enough to grab out the nearest coat, it would be too long, but she hoped would help conceal her in the castle, or at least once she got outside the castle. Though she wasn't exactly sure how to get out of the world. She hoped to make it up as she went along. All she was sure of was that she couldn't stay in the castle. She couldn't keep manipulating the two Keyblade Wielders that were making their way through the castle, even at that very moment. No, she had to get away.

She turned the doorknob as quietly as she could and slipped out through it, leaving the door cracked as she was unwilling to risk waking up the sleeping Nobody. At least she didn't think that they expected her to attempt an escape at this point. Marluxia seemed quite sure in his ability to keep her feeling trapped where she was. She would show him to think that he owned her. She crept down the hall silently, reaching a door she opened it and stepped through there as well. At last, checking her surroundings once, she let out a sigh of relief. So far so good. She pulled the coat on, lifting the hood and pulling it low so that it would cover her eyes. Fear keeping her at a constant state of anxiety she took off her sandals and hurried away through the castle at a sprint. She tried her hardest to move silently, the only noise perceptible from her being the sound of her "borrowed" coat swishing at each step. Yet she moved undetected, being correct in the fact that the organization members were almost arrogant in their thinking that she was wholly and entirely at their beck and call.

Having explored the castle multiple times she was fairly certain on where an alternate escape route would be. She knew there was more than one exit, Demyx mentioned it the last time he was in the castle. The front one wouldn't work. She had watched Marluxia set up an alarm system on it, so he would be alerted if anyone left or came through it.

There was only one section of the castle that she hadn't been able to explore yet. It wasn't the easiest to get to, but she was confident she would be able to. She hurried in that direction, winding her way quickly through the white halls. As she rounded a corner she flew to a stop, seeing the large organization member, Lexaeus, walk almost right past. He stopped and she held her breath, shaking so hard she thought it a wonder that her knees didn't buckle and send her crashing to the floor.

In one swift movement Lexaeus turned around, walking back towards her. Terrified, she practically flew around the corner, and, seeing a door, she pulled it open and entered, shutting it as quietly as she could behind her with her hands shaking wildly. She backed up slowly before turning and running blindly. Because of this she didn't see the boy that stood directly in her path. She hit him hard and fell back, skidding onto the floor. Almost blindly afraid now, she stared in horror at the person in front of her. His back was turned as he gazed out of a barred window, the light from the moon outside glistened against his features, allowing her to get a good look at him. He turned slowly, tilting his head curiously as he gazed down at her. Sora, was her first thought, but on closer inspection she realized that he wasn't the cheerful Keyblade wielder. His face was paler, even in the dim light. His eyes were a golden color and his hair was as black as the coat she wore. Even his very expression and mannerism were different. Less innocent, angry, perhaps even tortured. Frowning, she looked up at him curiously.

"Who are you? I've never seen you in the castle before," Naminé said, getting up slowly. "You look like...do you know Sora?"

The boy seemed unsure how to answer. "I've heard that name before...but where? Wait...how in the worlds did you get in here?"

Naminé stared, taken aback. "I walked in. Why are you here?"

"I'm trapped, body and heart," he said with a scowl. "It's my fate. I will never be free."

"So they're keeping you here, just like with me." An idea struck Naminé and she grinned at him. "Come with me, I'm sure we'll find a way out if we work together. Just as soon as Lexaeus leaves the area. We can leave forever, be free."

He merely stared at her for a moment before bursting out laughing, shaking his head with annoyance. "No, it's not that simple. Even if I got out of here, I wouldn't be free. Maybe you could though, so why don't you just run along. Enjoy being "free"."

More confused then ever she walked back over to the door, and upon hearing nothing, she opened it, looking both ways. She glanced back over her shoulder regretfully. The boy who looked so much like Sora watched her, yawning.

"Are you sure you don't want to come?" she asked. "I don't know why you think that you won't be free, but if you want to at least have a chance, come with me."

Silence filled the room as they looked at each other, both equally as uncertain as the other, though Naminé was a bit more trusting by nature, despite having little to trust. She held out her hand to him, in what she hoped was a kind gesture. At last he moved from his perfect stillness, approaching her and the doorway slowly. Hesitantly, he stretched out his hand as if he was going to out place his hand into hers before seeming to think better of it. He pulled his hand back sharply, crossing his arms over his chest. His expression turning haughty as he shrugged his shoulders.

"Hmph, you almost make me hopeful. I'll come along, it's not like I have anything better to do," he said. "Lead the way."

She smiled and started off, he fell into step beside her, his eyes falling to his shoes as he walked. He yawned once more.

"It is pretty late isn't it?" she said, feeling sorry for him. "By the way, my name's Naminé. What's yours?"

"I don't want to tell you," he said. When Naminé turned to frown at him he smirked.

"You don't have to be rude," Naminé muttered, only barely loud enough for him to hear her.

He scowled, looking up at the ceiling. "Wasn't my intention."

"You're weird," she said.

He laughed softly in response. "You have no idea... So, tell me, why are _you_ in this castle?"

Naminé kept walking, thinking over her answer. After a few moments of silence, the boy sighed. Sensing his impatience, Naminé started trying to explain as best she could.

"Well, I've been told that I don't belong anywhere else, I'm a Nobody, someone without a heart who came into being from another person," she said. "Nobodies don't feel happiness or sorrow. We don't belong in this world, we don't belong around people who are normal."

The boy nodded, taking in the information. "So that's why they keep you locked up here?"

Naminé shook her head no. "Not exactly. You see, I'm a bit different, the person I came from is still out there, living their life. I have special abilities, I can...manipulate people's memories."

His eyes widened. "Interesting ability that. No wonder they want to hold onto you."

"Yeah..." Naminé mumbled, she sighed heavily, her steps slowing as she led the boy through a door. "The thing is, remember how I said Nobodies don't have feelings? I...I think I do. I'm always so scared and lonely. I can cry...the others can't."

He looked at her, with pity or repulsiveness she wasn't sure. When he spoke the sarcasm that had thus far been present in his tone, wasn't there.

"I can understand to a degree, your situation. Or at least the Nobody part. I'm only one half of a whole. I have a heart, but it's completely made of darkness. I'll never be free of my light half, the "better" half as some might say," he said bitterly. "But emotions...I think it better to be without them."

Naminé looked at him, surprised. She pulled her hood down to get a better look at his face. "Why do you say that?"

"Look behind you," he instructed, motioning back over his shoulder.

She did as she was told, nearly jumping at the sight. Several small creatures followed along behind them. Diving into the floors and popping back up a little closer each time. They were different from other monsters she had seen, not heartless. But not nobodies either.

"Those things you see, they are the product of my emotions. I can't stop them, any time I feel anything at all, joy, anger, fear, sorrow...they pop up. And the more I fight against it, the more they keep coming," he told me, his hands forming fists at his sides. "At first I was like you, or as much as I ever could be. I wanted to be good, I tried to be good. I was innocent. But he...my master, didn't want me to stay that way, heh, it would have ruined his plans I suppose. I was so repulsed by the monsters that came from my emotions that I kept trying to destroy them, each time I got rid of one though, it hurt me. It hurt like a stabbing pain through my chest, over my heart. In frustration I went into a frenzy, destroying each one as they popped up. From my frustration they began popping up by the dozens, as though mocking me..."

Naminé's eyes were huge as she listened to his story, pity filling her heart. "What happened?"

His eyes were hard when he answered, guarded. The sounds of more of the monsters popping up around them resounded through the halls, alarming Naminé. "Eventually I grew so weak and wracked with pain that I passed out. I fell into a sort of coma. Not waking for over a month. When I woke all the Master did was punish me cruelly. It was after that that I decided emotions weren't worth it. I gave up on fighting my nature. But I always envied my light half. The shadow he cast over me was too great. He found a place to belong, a kind Master, and good friends who grew to become like siblings to him. And everywhere he went he made new friends. He was never alone. Not like me. I was left to watch from a distance, without anyone I could call a friend. So yes, Naminé, I can relate to you in a way."

"I'm so sorry," Naminé said. She tried to meet his eye but he looked away. "But you're wrong, in calling me innocent or good."

He looked over at her for a moment, smiling slightly. "But you are. You have this warmth about you, just like him. This kindness. You radiate light in a field around you. Your heart hasn't been touched by darkness. In a way, that makes you and I opposites."

He yawned widely as they rounded another corner, and Naminé noticed that his eyelids were drooping slightly. He stumbled, she reached to catch him but he had already straightened himself, leaning against the wall for support.

"Are you okay?" she asked.

He nodded, rubbing his forehead. "Yeah, I'm just...so tired... So, tell me, why are you so eager to escape?"

Still concerned, Naminé struggled to bring her thoughts back onto her current predicament. "They're making me do bad things. And I really don't want to anymore, no matter how much I'm tempted by being hopeful that I won't have to be so alone anymore if I do as they ask. It isn't worth it."

"See? This is where we're different. Unlike me, you are strong. You want to do the right thing," he said. Stopping, he stared at something past her. "There's the exit."

Naminé grinned, running through a few rows of pillars to reach the small door which was a different color from most other doors she had seen in the castle, being a dark gray. She flung it open, tasting freedom now. The boy however, she noticed, had not followed her. Turning slowly, she frowned at him. He stood slumped over, his eyes showing just how tired he was, how it took every ounce of his being to stay awake.

"Aren't you coming?" she asked, walking back over towards him. She stopped a couple of feet away and watched him anxiously.

He shook his head no. "I can't. I told you that already. There's somewhere else that I have to be."

She could tell that he was completely serious. That he would have to leave and go back into the castle. Back to wherever he initially came from.

"Will I ever see you again?" she asked, her lip trembling slightly.

He shrugged, locking eyes with her finally. "To tell the truth, I doubt I'll ever be _me_ again. But who knows...I hope so. After all, you're the first person I've met whose company I can stand."

This she thought, must be a huge compliment coming from him. She grinned, her eyes welling with tears against her will. They filled her eyes before streaming down her face, beading along her chin. The boy stared at her dumbfounded.

"Why are you crying?" he asked.

"I can't help it...it just, feels like I am losing a friend," she said through her tears.

He frowned, considering this for a couple of minutes while she kept crying. At last, he strode over to her, and, smiling the smallest of smiles, tousled her hair. Surprised, she stared up at him.

"Keep your chin up, crying doesn't suit you," he said.

Backing away, he watched her for a moment before turning around and walking back the way they came, towards the shadows. Running a few steps closer Naminé called after him to wait.

"You never told me your name," she said.

He glanced back over his shoulder at her, grinning. "It's Vanitas. Goodbye...friend."

She watched him disappear, wiping furiously at her tears. It was silly to cry, she hardly knew him. A smile spread across her face as she turned back towards the door. Her feet hit the threshold and she stopped, hesitant. Leaving would mean that Sora would never regain his memories of Kairi. It would be leaving him to the fate of what the organization had planned for him. How cruel would she be to leave him to such a fate? No, she would stay and stop acting like a coward. She would fix the wrongs she committed. Make things right for everyone. Drawing in a deep breath, she blew it back out slowly, backing back into the castle. She slid the door shut, glancing once more over her shoulder, in the direction Vanitas disappeared into. Squaring her shoulders, she walked back the way she came. She paused as she walked down the hallway with the door to where she had met Vanitas. Only...there was no door. She frowned, walking up and down the hall a couple of times. But there still was no sign of a door. She smiled, he certainly was a mysterious one. Leaving the hall, she walked up to the room she shared with Larxene and putting the coat back where it belonged, she slipped back into her own cot, curling up underneath the covers.

* * *

A scream woke Naminé abruptly the next morning. It was high pitched and shrill, no doubt meaning it was Larxene who had yelled. Sliding out of bed, Naminé grabbed her notebook, pulled open the door, and walked out into the hall quickly. She hurried towards the main hall, where the noise came from. She pulled open the door leading to it and ran forward only to fly to a stop at the sight that awaited her. Larxene and Marluxia stood in the center of the room, each with weapons out and surrounded by little dark creatures that moved around fast, slipping in and out of the floor. A smile slid across her face. So it all hadn't been a dream, she had really tried to escape and ran into that strange boy. Vanitas. She looked around, half expecting to see him standing somewhere nearby. But he wasn't. Alarm shot through her as Marluxia flew towards one of them, his scythe poised to slice one in two. Hardly thinking, she ran forward, flinging herself in front of the creature and enveloping it in her arms. She wasn't afraid that it would hurt her, and it didn't. It merely fell still.

Marluxia flew to stop with his weapon only inches from her face. Naminé flinched, looking up at the tall Nobody. He stared down at her incredulously.

It was Zexion who spoke, coming up from behind Naminé. "Why do you protect the creature? Did you make create it?"

Naminé shook her head no, forcing herself to meet his gaze. "No...but look, they aren't hurting anyone. They must have just come by mistake. Please don't hurt them. Just let them go."

Vexen, speaking up from where he stood also surrounded, barked with laughter. "Let them go? Are you insane girl? I must run experiments on them, Xemnas will want to know about these strange new creatures."

She looked back at Zexion pleadingly, knowing him to be one of the more sane people in the organization. Or at least, he was never cruel to her. He brought his hand to his chin in thought, bending down to get a closer look at them.

"She is right, they don't appear to be an enemy to us," he at last said.

Marluxia yelled then, and Naminé looked up to see him attempting to shake one of the creatures from his arm, it raked its hand against his arm before he was at last able to knock it off of him. He grabbed his arm, cursing under his breath. Naminé stared as the one she protected disappeared, followed closely by all of the others. They simply popped out of existence. The only evidence that they were ever there at all, was the scratch on Marluxia's arm. As the Nobodies began discussing this odd occurrence Naminé got back to her feet. She walked over to her usual chair and sat down, lifting her notebook.

Grabbing a crayon, she started to draw, smiling quietly to herself. At last, upon finishing, she held it up happily, admiring her work. It might not be the best drawing, but it was her favorite. It showed her and Vanitas, building an igloo as snow fell around them. The Vanitas and the Naminé in the picture were both laughing, happy. She wondered what their fates would be. Would either of them end up happy?

* * *

 **Authors Note:** So, I've long liked the idea of a friendship or even a romance between Naminé and Vanitas. I was so excited when I figured out a way I could have them meet that would at least somewhat make sense. I hope to write more with these two in the future.

This is also sort of my take on Vanitas's character, I like to think that maybe he's a little misunderstood.

I hope you all enjoyed this, any comments/reviews are much appreciated.


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